Posted by Chinedum Emeana on
The federal government will start to enforce the newly reviewed import duty rates and fiscal regime under the Ecowas Common External Tariff....
The federal government will start to enforce the newly reviewed import duty rates and fiscal regime under the Ecowas Common External Tariff (CET) from October 4. From this date, a 90-day grace period the federal government granted importers to conclude all old transactions. would have expired on October 3.
Government had announced the take-off of Cet on October 1, 2005 despite protests from the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), which wanted an extension of the implementation date.
Mrs. Nenadi Usman, minister of finance, recently communicated to the Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) the Federal Executive Council's (Fec) review of duty rates and fiscal policy measures and tariff amendments under the new tariff as harmonised with the Ecowas Cet. It also informed the agency that government has approved a grace period of 90 days before the take-off of the new duty rates.
"It should be emphasised that a grace period of 90 days which shall expire on October 3, 2006 was also approved for the new duty rates," she said. The reason for this grace period, she continued, is to enable importers who have opened Form ‘M' and must have entered into irrevocable trade agreements to process and clear their goods at the prevailing rates.
"In effect all transactions entered before July 4, 2006 are to enjoy the prevailing rates of duty while those entered after July 4, 2006 are affected by the amendments and fiscal policies," she explained.
The minister listed a total of 42 items and the new rates that they now attract under the latest revised import duty regime within the ambit of the Cet. The Cet is an initiative of the governments of Ecowas member-countries to harmonise import duty regime within the sub-region.
Usman also harped that items such as lining fabrics in rolls of man-made staple filaments and staple fibres (synthetic and artificial), and specialised safety shoes used in hospitals, fire fighting and factories have been exempted from the import prohibition list. The importation of lining fabrics was previously banned until the Nigerian Shippers Council (NSC) made a case for the importers to the government that they are raw materials used for the manufacture of other goods and not ready-for-use textiles.
Consequently, Mrs F.E Umoh, assistant comptroller general in charge of tariff and trade department of the Nigerian Customs Service (NCS), has written to all deputy comptroller generals, zonal coordinators, area controllers and unit heads of the NSC to inform them of the new development. She instructed them on behalf of the comptroller general of the Customs to ensure strict compliance.